Navarro Will Order More Mob Probes

January 23, 1985|By Ott Cefkin, Staff Writer

Terming the Organized Crime Unit he once headed as a ``stepchild`` that past administrations treated as a ``foreign legion,`` Broward County Sheriff Nick Navarro vowed Tuesday to expand that division to attack the mob on all fronts.

Navarro, who led the unit under three sheriffs, said his predecessors used the division to focus on hot issues and ignored many potential long-term investigations into less glamorous aspects of organized crime.

``Suggestions in the past fell on deaf ears,`` Navarro said.

Navarro made his remarks Tuesday afternoon during a news conference in which he introducted Col. Steven Bertucelli, a Metro-Dade commander he recently selected to head his OCD.

Bertucelli, who has wide experience in supervising large organized crime and intelligence units in South Florida, is expected to take over the unit in about three months.

``Bertucelli is the most qualified individual I could find to head that division,`` Navarro said.

Navarro accused past sheriffs of exploiting OCD by publicizing its success in cracking major drug cases, but doing little in dealing with mob infiltration into finance and commerce.

``I just wouldn`t get the manpower to do the job,`` he said.

Navarro said that the OCD under Bertucelli would make commitments to long- term projects exposing organized crime.

``I`m not running for anything,`` Navarro said. ``I`m here to do a job, and that`s it.``

The apparent failure of BSO to address and assess the full impact of mob activities in Broward led to the formation last year of the Metropolitan Intelligence Unit, an agency involving the State Attorney`s Office and Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach police departments.

Former Sheriff George Brescher declined offers to join the unit, which is expected to report the results of its investigation to a Broward grand jury shortly.

Navarro said he planned to consult with State Attorney Michael Satz, Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Ron Cochran and Terry Sullivan.